Shutter structure



N. BECKER SHUTTER STRUCTURE Fjiled April 4, 1955 March 24, 1959 ATTORNEY United States Patent STRUCTURE Nathan Becker, Miami, Fla., assignor, by mesne assign- J ments, to Small Business Administration, Atlanta, .Ga.

This invention is'ashutter structure for use in closing and securely sealing a window or door opening when it is desired to securely batten the window in the event of stormy weather, or to securely close and seal the opening when the building is to be vacated.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a structure capable of being readily and easily applied to the window, and which involves closure panels capable of being easily and quickly applied in sealing engagement over the window opening and which may with equal ease and facility be removed therefrom when desired.

A further object of the invention is to provide a shutter structure wherein the shutter panel holding members are permanently secured to the building at opposite sides of the window opening and including panels to be readily inserted and maintained in window closing position between the said members and locked securely in place so as to tightly close the window opening when occasion demands. 1

A still further and particular object of the invention is to provide simple clamping or holding means capable of being easily and quickly applied to or removed from the shutter structure and which, when properly associated therewith, maintains the shutter member in tightly sealed position over the opening.

With the foregoing objects in view, together with others which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts, all as will be described 1 more fully hereinafter, illustrated in the drawing and particularly pointed out in the claim.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is an elevation, parts broken away, of a shutter structure engaged over the window or door opening of a building as it will appear in operative position,

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the header member to receive the upper end of the panel structure,

Fig. 3 is a similar view of the mounting angle upon which the panel rests,

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of sectional sealing panels employed in carrying out the invention,

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially upon line 5-5 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken upon line 6-6 of Fig. l, with the spring clips removed, and

Fig. 7 is a perspective View illustrating one of the spring clips employed in carrying out the invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, the header member of the structure is indicated generally at 8 and is constructed of an elongated strip of suitable metal bent upon itself to provide a base 9, an outwardly projecting ledge 10 disposed at right angles to the base, and from the outer end of which is a depending flange or apron 11 spaced from the base 9. The length of this header will be slightly greater than the Width of the opening to be closed or sealed, and is secured to the building in parallelism with the upper edge of the window opening by means of screws or other fastening devices 12.

The mounting angle or panel support is also constructed from an elongated metal sheet bent upon itself to provide a mounting base 13 from which an outwardly projecting flat unobstructed sill v substantially right angles to the base, and having a depending lip or apron 15 at its outer edge in substantial parallelism with the base 13. This mounting angle is also permanently secured to the building by means of retaining screws 16 either upon or below the sill of the window opening. The header and mounting' angle'r'emain permanently attached to the building.

The closure member may consist of a single panel of sufiicient size to entirelycover the window opening, indicated at 17 and to slightly project beyond the four edges thereof, or may consist of a series of interengaging panels indicated at 18. It will be understood that these panels, whether single or assembled in a plurality, are of a height to cover thewindow opening and to rest at their lower edges upon the sill 14 of the mounting angle with their upper ends enclosed between the flange or apron 11 and the base 9 below the ledge 10. In instances where a plurality of panels are employed, these panels have interlocking adjacent longitudinal edges indicated at 19.

The sill 14 of the mounting angle is provided with spaced elongated openings or slots 20 spaced outwardly from the supporting base 13. These openings receive spring clips of the construction shown more particularly in Figs. 5 and 7. These clips, indicated generally at 21, are formed of elongated strips of spring metal of sufiicient width to fit within the spaced slots or openings 20 in the sill, the mid portion of each clip being bowed as at 22 and providing the spring arms or ends 23. These clips are of substantially broadened U-shape construction as shown, with-their extremities turned slightly outwar'dly as at 24 to facilitate the application of the clips in locking position.

When it is desired'to seal or batten the window, the panel, or interlocking panels as the case may be, are applied by first engaging the upper edges thereof behind the apron 11 of the header 8, after which the lower edge of the panel is moved inwardly until the lower edge thereof rests upon the sill 14. In that instance where a series of panels are employed, they will be properly inserted one after another in interlocking engagement with one another until sufficient number have been applied to extend entirely across the window opening. When thus positioned, the spring clips 21 are applied. These clips may be inserted either from the upper or the lower side of the sill, and are of such construction that they must be moved into the slots 20 until their bight or bowed portions 22 are forcibly engaged with the outer edges or walls of the openings 20 in the sill 14. The distance transversely of the clips between the outer edge of the bowed portion 22 and the lower surfaces of the ends 23 is normally slightly greater than the distance between the outer wall of the opening 20 and the surfaces of the panels and the mounting angle so that it will be necessary in each instance to force the spring clips against their inherent tension into proper position within the openings 20 as shown in Figs. 1 and 5. When properly positioned; the spring clips exert sufficient force against the panels 18 to hold them firmly and tightly over the window opening to prevent rain or wind entering the opening. When-it is desired to remove the shutter, it-is but necessary to retract the spring clips to relieve the pressure, after which the lower ends of the panels may be withdrawn from engagement with the sill and the tops withdrawn from the header. The construction of the panels is such that where a plurality of portion 14 projects at:

them. areemployed, they may be stacked one upon another in comparatively small space for storage purposes.

I claim: A shutter support structure for a Window opening in a building wall comprising a header member and a mounting angle mounted in parallelism respectively above and below said opening, said header comprising'ananchoring base to lie flat against saidbuilding wall and a ledge projecting at substantially right angles outwardly therefrom, an apron depending from the outer end of said ledge, said mounting angle comprising a mounting base to lie fiat against said building wall and astill projecting outwardly at right angles therefrom, a lip depending from the outer end of said sill, said sill having spaced apart openings therein disposed substantially midway between said lip and said mounting base,a,closure panel for said opening having its upper edge engaged between said flange and said anchoring .base and its loweredge resting upon said sill between the openings therein and said mounting base, a spring clip of substantially U-shape disposed in each of said openings with its mid portion engaged with the outer edge of its respective opening and its ends in spring contact with said panel to force the latter into tight engagement with said anchoring base and said mounting base, and means for securing said header member and said mounting angle to said wall.

References Cited in the file OffthiS' patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 859,635 Webster July 9, 1907 2,568,195 Jones Sept. 18, 1951 2,572,764 Rogers et al Oct. 23, 1951 2,604,675 Seaman July 29, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 559,932 Great Britain Mar. 10, 1944 903,160 Germany ....'Feb. 1, 1954 

